79 percent year-on-year, or 89 percent quarter-on-quarter, to around HK$23.6 million in the first quarter this year.

Revenue fell nearly 8 percent to HK$3.38 billion, a 24 percent drop from a quarter ago.

Revenue from the semiconductor solutions segment dropped by 1.6 percent to US$194.3 million (HK$1.16 billion) while the SMT solutions segment fell by 15 percent from a year ago to US$188.3 million.

Materials segment revenue grew by 1.3 percent from a year ago to US$51.6 million in the first quarter. The company recorded new orders of US$669 million during the first three months this year, a 45.3 percent growth from a year ago. The growth momentum of orders in January was disrupted in February due to the coronavirus pandemic in China, but bookings in March returned to normal, with an immaterial amount of order cancellation, said the company.

ASM predicts it will still record a double-digit percentage drop in new orders in the second quarter.

It also expects second-quarter revenue to be between US$500 million and US$580 million, while the gross profit margin will range between 34.5 percent and 36.5 percent.

Chief financial officer, Robin Gerard Ng Cher Tat, said nearly all of its workers in China have returned.

The virus adversely affected productivity in February, he added. The factories will work overtime in the next quarter.

Also, the group said it will maintain a sustainable dividend policy.

ASM Pacific profit plunges to HK$23.6m